Julie Fulkerson: Welcome to Arcata – we have it all, and here’s a partial list

Downtown Arcata as compared to the Bayshore Mall. City of Arcata graphic

There is ​no​ other city in Humboldt County or perhaps Northern California that has the positive attributes and resources of downtown Arcata​. ​

In a similar footprint as the Bayshore Mall (seriously, the area between Wildberries Marketplace and Plaza Shoe Shop), Arcata has more diversity and walkability than any other community in Humboldt offers.

There are more when you add the layers of invention and resourcefulness that Arcata represents and all those accounting, legal, design, architectural, cultural and technical resources on the second floors over retail shops.

Footnote: When the Bayshore Mall first opened, retailers throughout the county panicked. Arcata merchants joined together to assess our resources and focus on customer service. Arcata Main Street was born.

Two simple initial actions made a difference:

One was free. We agreed to stick to common open hours to give best service to customers.

One was cheap. We pooled our advertising money and bought the entire back page of the Union and North Coast Journal.

We gave up our business card sized-ads that get lost with all the other print and created strong images featuring the collective reasons to come to Arcata.

We each saved a lot of money and gained a greater impact.

Julie Fulkerson is a businessperson, musician, and former Arcata City Councilmember and mayor.